scholarly journals Memory Decline and Depressive Symptoms in a Nationally Representative Sample of Older Adults: The Health and Retirement Study (1998–2004)

2008 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 266-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hector M. González ◽  
Mary E. Bowen ◽  
Gwenith G. Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Representative Sample ◽  
Health And Retirement Study ◽  
Memory Decline ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Retirement Study

scholarly journals Memory Decline and Depression Onset in U.S. and European Older Adults

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 189-198
Author(s):  
Rebecca Bendayan ◽  
Amanda Kelly ◽  
Scott M. Hofer ◽  
Andrea M. Piccinin ◽  
Graciela Muniz-Terrera
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Mixed Models ◽  
Delayed Recall ◽  
Memory Decline ◽  
Lower Baseline ◽  
Health Aging ◽  
Persistent Depression ◽  
Retirement Study

Objectives: We explore the association between different patterns of change in depressive symptoms and memory trajectories in US and European Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, and Israel) and non-Mediterranean (Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, and Austria) older adults. Methods: Samples consisted of 3,466 participants from the Health Retirement Study (HRS) and 3,940 participants from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement (SHARE). Individuals were grouped as follows: non-case depression (NO DEP), persistent depression (DEP), depression onset (ONSET), depression recovery (RECOV), and fluctuating (FLUCT). Memory was measured using immediate and delayed recall tests. Linear mixed models were used. Results: DEP and RECOV had significantly lower baseline memory scores compared to NO DEP, at intercept level. At slope level, ONSET had a significantly faster decline in both tasks compared to NO DEP. Discussion: Cross-cohort robust and consistent new empirical evidence on the association between depression onset and faster decline in memory scores is provided.

Arthritis, Depression, and Falls Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Evidence From the Health and Retirement Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (9) ◽  
pp. 1133-1149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lien T. Quach ◽  
Jeffrey A. Burr
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Health And Retirement Study ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Significant Depression ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Clinically Significant ◽  
Retirement Study

The aims of this study were to examine the association between different types of arthritis and falls and to investigate whether clinically significant depression symptoms (CSDS) moderate these relationships. The study used nationally representative data from the 2008 Health and Retirement Study ( n = 7,715, M age = 75, 62% female, and 90% White). Among the respondents, 42% experienced at least one fall during the previous 2 years. About one third had some form of arthritis: 22% osteoarthritis (OA), 4.8% rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 2.3% both OA and RA, and 7.9% with other arthritis types. About one fifth of respondents had CSDS. OA and CSDS are associated with the odds of falling (17% and 29%, respectively), adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics, lifestyle, health conditions, and psychiatric medications. There was no statistically significant interaction between types of arthritis and CSDS. Health care providers should pay attention to managing arthritis, especially OA, and CSDS to prevent falls among older adults.

scholarly journals Genetic heterogeneity in depressive symptoms following the death of a spouse: Polygenic score analysis of the US Health and Retirement Study

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin W. Domingue ◽  
Hexuan Liu ◽  
Aysu Okbay ◽  
Daniel W. Belsky
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Life Stress ◽  
Genome Wide Association Study ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health And Retirement Study ◽  
Polygenic Score ◽  
Polygenic Scores ◽  
Retirement Study

AbstractExperience of stressful life events is associated with risk of depression. Yet many exposed individuals do not become depressed. A controversial hypothesis is that genetic factors influence vulnerability to depression following stress. This hypothesis is most commonly tested with a “diathesis-stress” model, in which genes confer excess vulnerability. We tested an alternative model, in which genes may buffer against the depressogenic effects of life stress. We measured the hypothesized genetic buffer using a polygenic score derived from a published genome-wide association study (GWAS) of subjective wellbeing. We tested if married older adults who had higher polygenic scores were less vulnerable to depressive symptoms following the death of their spouse as compared to age-peers who had also lost their spouse and who had lower polygenic scores. We analyzed data from N=9,453 non-Hispanic white adults in the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a population-representative longitudinal study of older adults in the United States. HRS adults with higher wellbeing polygenic scores experienced fewer depressive symptoms during follow-up. Those who survived death of their spouses during follow-up (n=1,829) experienced a sharp increase in depressive symptoms following the death and returned toward baseline over the following two years. Having a higher polygenic score buffered against increased depressive symptoms following a spouse's death. Effects were small and clinical relevance is uncertain, although polygenic score analyses may provide clues to behavioral pathways that can serve as therapeutic targets. Future studies of gene-environment interplay in depression may benefit from focus on genetics discovered for putative protective factors.

scholarly journals Self-reported Instances of Major Discrimination, Race/Ethnicity, and Inflammation Among Older Adults: Evidence From the Health and Retirement Study

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryon J Cobb ◽  
Lauren J Parker ◽  
Roland J Thorpe
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Psychosocial Factor ◽  
Prevalence Ratio ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health And Retirement Study ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Retirement Study

Abstract Background This study examines the relationship between self-reported instances of major discrimination and inflammation among older adults, and explores whether this relationship varies in accordance with race/ethnicity. We hypothesized that self-reported instances of major discrimination would be associated with higher levels of high-risk inflammation and that this relationship would be stronger for racial/ethnic minorities than whites. Methods Data from the 2006/2008 Health and Retirement Study, an ongoing biennial nationally representative sample of older adults in the United States, were used to collect measures of self-reported instances of major discrimination and high-risk C-reactive protein (CRP), which was assayed from blood samples. Modified Poisson regression with robust standard errors was applied to estimate the prevalence ratios of self-reported instances of major discrimination, as it relates to high-risk CRP (CRP ≥ 22 kg/m2), and test whether this relationship varies by race/ethnicity. Results Respondents who experienced any instances of major discrimination had a higher likelihood of high-risk CRP (prevalence ratio [PR]: 1.14, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.07–1.22) than those who did not report experiencing any instances of major discrimination. This association was independent of differences in newly diagnosed health conditions and socioeconomic status. The relationship between any self-reported instance of major discrimination and high-risk CRP was weaker for blacks than whites (PR: 0.81, 95% CI = 0.69–0.95). Conclusions Our study confirms that self-reported instances of major lifetime discrimination is a psychosocial factor that is adversely associated with high-risk CRP among older adults; this association is especially pronounced among older whites. Future studies among this population are required to examine whether the relationship between self-reported instances of major discrimination and high-risk CRP changes over time.

scholarly journals ASSOCIATION BETWEEN FRAILTY AND DEVELOPMENT OF COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT: EVIDENCE FROM THE HEALTH AND RETIREMENT STUDY

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S683-S683
Author(s):  
Nicholas V Resciniti ◽  
Jaleel McNiel ◽  
Matthew Lohman
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Smoking Status ◽  
Health And Retirement Study ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Frailty Status ◽  
Early Markers ◽  
Phenotype Model ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Retirement Study

Abstract Research has shown there is currently an increasing prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia in older adults. To date, there remains a paucity of research to explain this increase and research on early markers and risk factors are warranted. This study aims to assess the association of cognitively normal older adults who are frail and the development of cognitive impairment four years later. Data from the Health and Retirement Study – a nationally representative sample of older US adults – was used from 2004-2008 for individuals 65 and older (n=8,377). Frailty was categorized by using Fried’s phenotype model: individuals were grouped into frail, pre-frail, and robust. Cognitive impairment – a composite score that assessed memory recall and global mental status – was classified as scoring eight or less on a 35-point scale. After restricting to cognitively healthy individuals, logistic regression with weights was used to assess the association between frailty status and the development of cognitive impairment four years later. The model was adjusted for baseline age, gender, race, education years, smoking status, and chronic health issues (high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, lung disease, heart disease, stroke, psychiatric problems, and arthritis). Frail individuals, compared to those who were robust, had increased odds of cognitive impairment (OR=1.74; 95% CI: 1.48-2.16), after fully adjusting. Evidence from this study suggest that frail individuals are more likely to become cognitively impaired over time. This provides a potential pathway of intervention to help delay or prevent the development of cognitive impairment in older US adults.

scholarly journals Short-Term Mental Health Sequelae of Bereavement Predict Long-Term Physical Health Decline in Older Adults: U.S. Health and Retirement Study Analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin W Domingue ◽  
Laramie Duncan ◽  
Amal Harrati ◽  
Daniel W Belsky
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Health And Retirement Study ◽  
Spousal Death ◽  
Health Decline ◽  
Retirement Study

Abstract Objectives Spousal death is a common late-life event with health-related sequelae. Evidence linking poor mental health to disease suggests the hypothesis that poor mental health following death of a spouse could be a harbinger of physical health decline. Thus, identification of bereavement-related mental health symptoms could provide an opportunity for prevention. Methods We analyzed data from N = 39,162 individuals followed from 1994 to 2016 in the U.S. Health and Retirement Study; N = 5,061 were widowed during follow-up. We tested change in mental and physical health from prebereavement through the 5 years following spousal death. Results Bereaved spouses experienced an increase in depressive symptoms following their spouses’ deaths but the depressive shock attenuated within 1 year. Bereaved spouses experienced increases in disability, chronic-disease morbidity, and hospitalization, which grew in magnitude over time, especially among older respondents. Bereaved spouses were at increased risk of death compared to nonbereaved respondents. The magnitude of depressive symptoms in the immediate aftermath of spousal death predicted physical-health decline and mortality risk over 5 years of follow-up. Discussion Bereavement-related depressive symptoms indicate a risk for physical health decline and death in older adults. Screening for depressive symptoms in bereaved older adults may represent an opportunity for intervention to preserve healthy life span.

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